Halal is an Arabic word defined as “lawful” or “lawful,” and refers to a strict diet that Muslims often follow. Foods that are from the land or natural are essential for this type of diet. Usually all the ingredients come from fish, plants and vegetables. Some halal ingredients come from meat, but the meat must be slaughtered according to specific rules.
Turmeric is halal only when it is emulsified with a plant, not an animal.
Traditional rules dictate that halal fat-based ingredients must be made only from vegetable fat, such as mono- and diglyceride fats. Most of the time, “vegetable” is placed before the name of the fat. Vegetable fats that have been altered in the laboratory are not considered halal ingredients.
Halal ingredients used in flavorings, such as vanilla or turmeric, must also be processed in a specific way. Vanilla beans along with vanillin, the aromatic compound in vanilla beans, are considered halal as no alcohol is used in their production. Other types of vanilla flavorings are not considered halal as they are processed with alcohol, which is strictly prohibited. When emulsifiers are added to turmeric, the spice is not used. It is only considered acceptable if the emulsifier comes from a plant, but not from animals.
In a general sense, “halal” means “lawful” in Arabic and refers to what is permitted by the rules of Islam.
Many preservatives are halal, depending on the source and manufacturing process. Preservatives like hydroxybenzoates are not, because they use alcoholic solvents to process. Another preservative, calcium benzoate, can be consumed if the chemical was obtained from minerals and not from bones.
Various ingredients can be consumed as long as they are not a by-product of the wine. Many tartrates are obtained after the fermentation of grapes, which is prohibited for those who follow this diet. Tartaric acid, cream of tartar and sodium tartrates can only be considered halal if they are not the result of grape fermentation.
Islamic texts are used to define which ingredients are or are not halal.
Flavor enhancers can be problematic as the chemicals used can be grown in culture media using pig fat. It is also important to discover how the flavor enhancers monosodium glutamate, calcium glutamate, and monopotassium glutamate are produced. Manufacturers can often provide this information.
Certain individuals, typically Muslims, choose to follow a halal diet. Not all food products are marked as halal, so the ingredients must be carefully analyzed. Food must be natural and come from plants or meat that has been treated humanely to receive this designation. Sometimes the source of the compound and the processing techniques will help determine if a specific ingredient can be considered halal.
